Innovative Solar Panel Installation at Bexhill-on-Sea
An extensive project to install solar panels at an estate we manage in East Sussex is now fully installed and running, providing 50kWp to 25 residents directly as well as the landlord’s supply. It is the very first project of its kind to get ECO4 Government Grant Funding and is also the first project of its size or scale in England to be retrofitted.
The SolShare technology introduced from Australia, is innovative in the way that it is designed to allow multiple flats in apartment buildings to be connected by a shared rooftop solar system. The technology not only allows for the distribution of solar power evenly across the building, but also measures the input and export of power for each individual flat. This means that it will not only reduce maintenance costs for the communal areas, but also for the individual apartments/flats too.
The Estate located in Bexhill-on-Sea, built in 1986 had been entertaining the idea of solar panels for some time; Estate Manager Len first began researching the
possibility for his estate in 2021, following a company focus on Sustainability and reducing our carbon footprint.
It was Len’s goal to promote the estate to be as sustainable as possible; following his previous initiative to replace the communal lights with more energy efficient LED bulbs (which halved the communal electricity bills!), solar power was the next vision. However, he hit a roadblock with funding, projecting that it would take at least 5 years plus, to raise the initial project cost. But Len did not give up and worked hard liaising with green non-profit organisations such as Energise Sussex Coast and discovered a local cooperative/charity through his new contacts who were part of a larger national Energy4all cooperative.
Energise Sussex Coast were very interested in the estate and the possibilities, upon looking at the estate more closely, it was discovered that the building had a very compatible roof, fully south facing all day on an axis, which meant the estate would produce more electricity than they could use. They put Len in touch with a contact at E.ON Energy, who could offer a combination of funding from E.ON alongside government grant funding to complete the project. The estate needed to undergo vetting to qualify but was approved as an electric only building due to it being made up of mainly D or E rated properties.
Meetings with residents, on the prospect of solar at the estate, were very positive and produced much enthusiasm and desire for the project to move forward. Following lots of planning meetings on the logistics of the project, Flint Energy visited the estate and tested the building to analyse its possible needs. It was concluded that the estate would make major savings on their electricity bills, and that the residents also qualified for assistance by the government ECO4 scheme by a majority. E.ON then applied for the government grant on behalf of the estate, giving evidence of required resident vetting, building tests and their independent review of the energy rating of individual flats. The Estate was awarded the grant funding; with E.ON adding some additional funding to ensure the project could move forward.
Flint Energy co-ordinated the installation project management including liaising with UK Power networks who gave permission to feed back electricity into the national grid. Following this the scaffolding went up at the end of July 2023 and work began, with the electricians contracted from Flint Energy starting to cable the individual flats and the landlord’s supply.
In September, the project was for the most part complete, with two floors out of three having use of solar power, with the excess power exported back into the national grid. The introduction of Solar along with the Solshare system and cavity wall and roof insulation, means that the properties will be brought up to a high B energy rating which is a big improvement, and will offer a huge cost saving on their individual bills, estimated at £300-£400 per flat a year, whilst also reducing their service charges for the communal areas.
Estate Manager Len is confident that the new technology will show results almost immediately, with residents reaping the rewards through a reduction in their monthly electricity bills. Looking to the future the building will be able to run at a much lower cost, and have a much smaller Carbon Footprint, benefiting all who live there.
The project has been extensive and time consuming due to it being the first of its kind, as with all best laid plans, they can differ in practice, and someone always has to be the first to try it! That being said, those involved have learnt a lot from the project and have been fully committed to ensuring the installation was a roaring success. The estate has benefitted from hundreds of thousands of pounds of technology at no cost, offering a lifetime of savings for residents, with the benefits far outweighing any challenges they’ve faced to get there.
Flint Energy are due back at Belmont in the New Year to review the system's success and help the residents maximise the usage of their solar generation and also help them with the Smart Export Guarantee to further increase their savings.
Please visit Flint Energy’s website to read more about the project
